A few days ago I had a sudden brainwave: of course Venezuela’s socialist government cannot give up on its revolution, because for 17 years its followers have believed every single word the great comandante Hugo Chávez, who passed away in 2013, told them. To tell them now that Chávez might have been wrong or at least not completely right, would be the cruelest thing to do. Like trying to convince a firm believer that God doesn’t exist.

Only people with at least the charisma and authority of Chávez could pass on such a message. ‘Dear chavistas: we are modifying the revolution’s track and choosing a different road to follow. We need to do that to save our country and your future.’ There is nobody in Venezuela who could do the job.

When I arrived in Venezuela the 8th of June, president Chávez was already in Cuba, to talk with his friends Fidel and Raúl Castro. He’s still there, I’m back in Colombia and wish to return to that strange country, that is Venezuela where many complain about political and economic paralysis and where the poor are glad with a president who gives them a job, free education and healthcare. Two floors of my 8 floor hotel in Caracas were crowded with flood victims. Measure of the government. Is that bad? There are many sides to the Chávez story. (more…)

Interesting, Mexico’s president Felipe Calderón’s proposal for reelection. When I first heard about it from my Dutch colleague in Mexico, Jan-Albert Hootsen, I thought the Mexican president would join his colleagues Chávez, Uribe, Morales and Correa, who all changed constitution for their own reelection, but Calderón’s case is different and that is refreshing. (more…)

Winds of war, as they say in Spanish, between Venezuela and Colombia and we don’t know where this is going to end. Never has the situation been so delicate. One spark of fire accross the border and it’s bingo. To me as an outsider from Holland the thing keeps being unreal, this fight between two Latin caudillos who are both so attached to power. (more…)

This headline was published by Colombia Reports today. In this post I will publish Colombia Reports’ article, not before having said that this boy who lost his youth in the jungle (19-31 years, 12 years there) should be liberated NOW and the rest as soon as possible as well. He has been there twice as long as Íngrid Betancourt, the most famous hostage, who was liberated last year in the Operation Jaque. (more…)

The crisis between Colombia and Venezuela is getting almost funny. Colombia’s president Álvaro Uribe travels around almost the whole continent to convince its leaders that it is imporant that the USA can use Colombia’s military bases, the reason why Venezuela’s president Chávez had entered into rage. In the meantime all kinds of people, ex-president Ernesto Samper, the opposition, businessmen, travel to Caracas to soothe the crisis. (more…)